泡泡劍橋兒童英語故事閱讀
回首過去,我發現小學在我心中是一本書,一本滿載豐富多彩、妙趣橫生的故事的書。下面是小編帶來的,歡迎閱讀!
精選
Damon and Pythias
達蒙和皮西厄斯
A young man whose name was Pythias had done something which the tyrant Dionysius did not like. For this offence he was dragged to prison, and a day was set when he should be put to death. His home was far away, and he wanted very much to see his father and mother and friends before he died.
一個生輕人名叫皮西厄斯,做了一件暴君迪奧尼修斯不喜歡的事情。因為對暴君的冒犯,皮西厄斯被投進了監獄,還確定了被處死的日期。因為離家很遠,他非常想在臨死之前去看看父母和朋友們。
"Only give me leave to go home and say good-by to those whom I love," he said, "and then I will come back and give up my life."
“就讓我回去辭別我愛的人吧,”他說,“然後我會回來終結我的生命。”
The tyrant laughed at him.
暴君嘲笑他。
"How can I know that you will keep your promise?" he said. "You only want to cheat
me, and save yourself."
“我怎麼知道你會信守諾言?”他說。“你只想欺騙我.救你自己。”
Then a young man whose name was Darmon spoke and said.
這時一位名叫達蒙的年輕男子開口說:
"O king! Put me in prison in place of my friend Pythias, and let him go to his own country to put his affairs in order, and to bid his friends farewell. I know that he will come back as he promised, for he is a man who has never gone back on his word. But if he is not here on the day which you have set, then I will die in his stead."
“噢,國王!把我送進監獄,讓我代替我的朋友皮西厄斯,讓他回自己的國家,處理好事務,與他的朋友們告別吧。我知道他一定會信守諾言回來的,因為他是一個從不食言的人。但是,如果在你設定的那天,他沒有回到這裡,我願替他***。”
The tyrant was surprised that anybody should make such an offer. He at last agreed to let Pythias go, and gave orders that the young man Damon should be shut up in prison.
暴君很驚,竟然有人提出這樣的請求。他終於同意讓皮西厄斯回去,並下令把達蒙關進監獄。
Time passed, and by and by the day drew near which had been set for Pythias to die;and he had not come back. The tyrant ordered the jailer to keep close watch upon Darnon, and not let him escape. But Damon did not try to escape. He still had faith in the truth and honor of his friend. He said, "If Pythias does not come back in time, it will not be his fault.It will be because he is hindered against his will."
時間流逝,日子一天天過去,離皮西厄斯的死期越來越近,而他還沒有回來。暴君命令獄吏嚴密監視達蒙,不讓他逃跑、但是達蒙並沒有試圖逃跑,他仍然相信他朋友的真誠和名譽。他說:“如果皮西厄斯沒有按時回來,那也不是他的錯,肯定是他受到了阻礙,違背了他的意願。”
At last the day came, and then the very hour. Damon was ready to die. His trust in his friend was as firm as ever; and he said that he did not grieve at having to suffer for one whom he loved so much.
這一天最終降臨,行刑的時間到了。達蒙準備接受死刑,但他對朋友的信任一如既往地堅定,他說他為一個他深愛的朋友遭受痛苦,他並不感到悲傷。
Then the jailer came to lead him to his death; but at the same moment Pythias stood in the door. He had been delayed by storms and shipwreck, and he had feared that he was too late. He greeted Damon kindly, and then gave himself into the hands of the jailer. He was happy because he thought that he had come in time, even though it was at the last moment.
獄卒準備帶他去行刑臺,但就在這時,皮西厄斯出現在了門口。風暴和船舶失事使他延誤了行程.他害怕回來得太晚。他友好地向達蒙問候,之後把自己交到獄卒手中。他很高興,因為他認為他準時回來了,雖然是在最後一刻。
The tyrant was not so bad but that he could see good in others. He tell that men who loved and trusted each other, as did Damon and Pythias, ought not to suffer unjustly.And so he set them both free.
暴君並非十分邪惡,他還能看到他人身上的美德。他感到人們彼此愛護,相互信任,像達蒙和皮西厄斯一樣,不應該受到不公正的對待。於是他讓兩人都獲得了自由。
I would give all my wealth to have one such friend," he said.
“我願意用我所有的財富去換取這樣一位朋友,”他說。
King Canute on the Seashore
克努特國王在海濱
Long ago, England was ruled by a king named Canute. Like many leaders and men of power, Canute was surrounded by people who were always praising him. Every time he walked into a room, the flattery began.
很久以前,統治英格蘭的國王名叫克努特。像許多領導者和掌權人一樣,克努特總是被稱讚他的人包圍著。每當他走進房間,奉承就片始了。
"You are the greatest man that ever lived," one would say.
“您是古往今來最偉大的人,”有個人會這麼說。
Then another would insist, "O king! There can never be another man so mighty as you,"
接著另一個會堅持說:“啊,國王,再不能有別的人像您這樣強大了。”
And someone would smile and say,‘Your highness, there is nothing you cannot do."
又一個人會微笑著說:“殿下,沒有什麼是您不能做的。”
"Great Canute, you are the monarch of all," another would sing. "Nothing in this world dares to disohey you."
“偉大的克努特,您是萬王之王,”另一個會高唱。“在這世上沒有人敢違背您。”
The king was a man of senses, and he grew tired of hearing such foolish speeches.
國王是個明白人,他聽膩了這些蠢話。
One day he was walking by the seashore, and his officers and courtiers were with him, praising him as usual. Canute decided to teach them a lesson, so he bade them set his chair on the beach close by the edge of the water.
一天,他走在海邊,軍官和朝臣們陪同在他左右,仍像往常一樣頌揚他。克努特決定給他們一個教訓,所以他命令他們把椅子放在沙灘上,緊靠水邊。
"So you say I am the greatest man in the world?" he asked.
“你們說我是世界上最偉大的人,是嗎?”他問。
"O king," they cried, "there never has been anyone as powerful as you, and there never be anyone so great, ever again!"
“噢,國王陛下,”他們喊道,“從來沒有像您一樣強大的人了,將來也不會有和您一樣偉大的人,絕不會胡!”
"And you say all things obey me'?" Canute asked.
“你們說一切都聽我的嗎?”克努特問。
"Absolutely!" they said. "The world bows before you, and gives you honor."
“絕對!”他們說。“世界都要向您屈服,向您致敬。”
"I see”the king answered."In that case. bring me my chair, and we will go down to the water."
“我明白了,”國王答道。“這樣的話,把我的倚子拿來,讓我們走到水裡。”
"At once, your majesty!" They scrambled to carry his royal chair over the sands.
“馬上,陛下!”他們爭相把寶座從沙灘上抬起來。
"Bring it closer to the sea," Canute called. "Put it right here, right at the water's edge."He sat down and surveyed the ocean before him. "I notice the tide is coming in. Do you think it will stop if I give the command'?"
“把它放得離大海更近些,”克努特喊道,“就把它放在這裡,就在水邊。”他坐下來.環視著眼前的大海。“我注意到潮水就要上漲。你們認為如果我命令它,它會停止嗎?”
His officers were puzzled, but they did not dare say no. "Give the order, O great king, and it will obey," one of then assured him.
官員們被難住了,但是他們不敢說不。“下命令吧,噢,偉大的國王,它一定會聽從的。”一個人向他保證。
"Very well. Sea," cried Canute, "I command you to come no further! Waves, stop your rolling! Surf, stop your pounding! Do not dare touch my feet!"
”很好。大海,”克努特大喊道,“我命令你,不許再向前!海浪,停止翻滾!浪濤.停止撞擊!不許碰到我的腳!”
He waited a moment, quietly, and a tiny wave rushed up the sand and lapped at his feet.
他靜靜地等了一會兒,一個小小的波浪衝上沙灘,拍掃一著他的腳。
"How dare you!" Canute shouted. "Ocean, turn back now! I have ordered you to retreat before me, and now you must obey! Go back!"
“大膽!”克努特大喊道。“大海,現在就回頭!我已經給你下達了命令,在我面前後退,現在你必須遵守!後退!”
And in answer another wave swept forward and curled around the king's feet. The tide came in, just as it always did. The water rose higher and higher. It came up around the king's chair, and wet not only his feet, but also his robe. His officers stood before him,alarmed, and wondering whether he was not mad.
作為回答,另一個波浪衝上前來,包圍了國王的腳。潮水依然像往常一樣上漲起來。海水越漲越高,漲到了國王椅子周圍,不僅打溼了國王的腳,還有他的長袍。軍官們站在他的面前,大感震驚,懷疑國王是不是瘋了。
"Well, my friends," Canute said, "it seems I do not have quite so much power as you would have me believe. Perhaps you have learned something today. Perhaps now you will remember there is only one King who is all-powerful, and it is he who rules the sea, and holds the ocean in the hollow of his hand. I suggest you reserve your praises for him."
嗯,我的朋友們,”克努特說,“看來我並不像你們讓我相信的那樣強大。也許你們今天學到了什麼。也許現在你們記起只有一個國王是萬能的,是他主宰著大海,把海洋握在手心。我建議你們把讚美留給他吧。”
The royal officers and courtiers hung their heads and looked foolish. And some say Canute took off his crown soon afterward, and never wore it again.
王宮軍官和朝臣們垂下頭,看起來很可笑。有人說,不久克努特摘下了他的王冠,再也沒戴過。
學習
The Story of Moses, the Leader of the Jewish People
猶太民族領袖摩西的故事
Some time during the twentieth century before our era, a small and unimportant tribe of Semitic shepherds had left its old home and moved westward, trying to find new pastures. This tribe of shepherds was known as the Hebrews or, as we call them, the Jews. They had wandered far and wide for many years before they had been given shelter in Egypt.
公元前2000年的某一天,一支小而不重要的閃米特遊牧部落踏上了流浪的旅程。這支遊牧部落被稱為希伯來人,我們通常叫他們猶太人。他們輾轉而行,經過長時間的悲慘漂泊之後,終於在埃及得到了一小塊棲身之地。
For more than five centuries they had dwelt among the Egyptians and when their adopted country had been overrun by the Hyksos marauders they had managed to make themselves usetul to the foreign invader and had been left in the undisturbed possession of their grazing fields. But after a long war of independence the Egyptians had driven the Hyksos out of the valley of the Nile and then the Jews had come upon evil times for they had been degraded to the rank of common slaves and they had been forced to work on the royal roads and on the Pyramids.And as the frontiers were guarded by the Egyptian soldiers it had been impossible for the Jews to escape.
他們在埃及居住了500多年,一直與當地居民和睦相處。後來當接納他們的國家被希克索斯人征服時,他們轉而竭力為外國侵略者效芳,總算使自己的牧場得以保全。經過長期的獨立戰爭,埃及人將希克索斯人趕出了尼羅河谷。此時,猶太人噩運臨頭了。他們被貶為奴隸,破迫在皇家大道和金字塔工地上像牛馬一樣幹活。並目,由於邊境上有埃及士兵的嚴密看守,猶太人根本不可能逃出埃及。
After many years of suffering they were saved from their miserable fate by a young Jew, called Moses, who for a long time had dwelt in the desert and there had learned to appreciate the simple virtues of his earliest ancestors, who had kept away from cities and city-life and had refused to let themselves be corrupted by the ease and the luxury of a foreign civilisatitm.
歷經多年的磨難,終於有一位名叫摩西的年輕猶太人帶領族人逃出了苦海。摩西曾常年居住在沙漠,那裡的牧民遵循祖先的傳統,拒絕被外國文明的安逸奢華所汙染。
Moses decided to bring his people back to a love of the ways of the patriarchs. He succeeded in evading the Egyptian troops that were sent after him and led his fellow tribesmen into the heart of the plain at the foot of Mount Sinai. During his long and lonely life in the desert, he had learned to revere the strength of the great God of the Thunder and the Storm, who ruled the high heavens and upon whom the shepherds depended for life and light and breath. This God, one of the many divinities who were widely worshipped in western Asia, was called Jehovah, and through the teaching of Moses, he became the sole Master of the Hebrew race.
摩西很欣賞祖先們的質樸美德,決意喚回族人對它們的熱愛。他成功地躲過了埃及追乓,帶領族人來到西奈山腳下的平原中心。在漫長、孤單的沙漠中,他學會了敬畏閃電與風暴之神的力量。這位神統治著天庭,牧人的生命、取火和呼吸都依賴他。此神是西亞廣受崇拜的眾神之一,名為耶和華。通過摩西對族人的教誨,耶和華成為希伯來民族唯一的主宰。
One day, Moses disappeared from the camp of the Jews. It was whispered that he had gone away canying two tablets of rough-hewn stone. That afternoon. the top of the mountain was lost to sight. The darkness of a terrible storm hid it from the eye of man. But when Moses returned, behold! There stood engraved upon the tablets the words which Jehovah had spoken unto the people of Israel amidst the crash of his thunder and the blinding flashes of his lightning. And from that moment, Jehovah was recognised by all the Jews as the Highest Master of their Fate, the only True Gud, who had taught them how to live holy lives when he bade them to follow the wise lessons of his Ten Commandments.
一天,摩西突然離開猶太人的營地不見了,有人傳言他是帶著兩塊粗石板出去的。當天下午,鳥雲蔽日,風暴大作,人們望不見西奈山的山頂。可當摩西返回時,看啊,兩塊粗石板上已經劃刻滿了耶和華在電閃雷嗚中對以色列民族說的話。從這時起,耶和華被所有猶太人奉為他們命運的最高王宰。唯一的真神。他教猶太人如何按十誡的訓示去過聖潔的生活。
They followed Moses when he bade them continue their journey through the desert. They obeyed him when he fold them what to eat and drink and what to avoid that they might keep well in the hot climate. And finally after many years of wandering they came to a land which seemed pleasant and prosperous. It was called Palestine. Unfortunately, the mainland. Palestine, was already inhabited by another Semitic race, called the Canaanites. But the Jews forced their way into the valleys and built themselves cities and constructed
a mighty temple in a town which they named Jerusalem, the Home of Peace.
摩西帶領猶太人繼續其穿越沙漠的旅程,人們都跟隨著他。摩西告訴他們該吃什麼,喝什麼以及怎樣做才能在炎熱氣候中保持身體健康,他們都一一遵從。經過多年的艱難跋涉,猶太人終於來到一塊快樂而富饒的土地。此地名為巴勒斯坦,很不幸的是,此時的巴勒斯坦內陸已經被另一支閃米特部族迦南人佔據。然而猶太人奮力衝開道路,進入山谷,建立起許多城市。他們修築了一座敬奉耶和華的巨集偉廟宇,並將廟宇所在的城市命名為“耶路撒冷”,意思是“和平之鄉”。
As for Moses, he was no longer the leader of his people. He had been allowed to see the mountain ridges of Palestine from afar. Then he had closed his tired eyes for all time. He had worked faithfully and hard to please Jehovah. Not only had he guided his tribesmen out of foreign slavery into the tree and independent life of a new home but he had also made the Jews the first of all nations to worship a single God.
至於摩西,此時的他已不再是猶太人的領袖了。他安詳地望著遠方巴勒斯坦的群山,然後永遠地閉上了疲倦的雙眼。他一直虔誠而勤勉地工作,取悅耶和華。他不僅把族人從外國的奴役中帶到了一個自由獨立的新家園,還使猶太人成為歷史上第一個敬奉唯一神的民族。